By now, almost everyone knows airlines, hotels, rental car companies, and even fast food chains have loyalty programs. Airlines, in particular, design those loyalty programs to reward frequent flyers through award miles, upgrades, waived fees, and lounge access. United has the MileagePlus program, Delta has the SkyMiles program, and American Airlines has the AAdvantage program.…
Congratulations! You’ve made it! After spending countless hours on airplanes flying all over the world you’ve finally reached top-tier elite status with American Airlines. It’s no easy feat. To do so, you have to earn at least $15,000 Elite Qualifying Dollars and either 100,000 Elite Qualifying Miles or 120 Elite Qualifying Segments. To the layman, you basically…
A few weeks ago I completed (potentially) my final major trip of the year. With that quick trip to Japan I earned my 100,000th Elite Qualifying Mile and $15,000th Elite Qualifying Dollar. As a result, I unlocked another year of American Airlines AAdvantage Executive Platinum elite status. About a week after completing my trip I…
For some, myself included, it’s a big deal when they finally earn elite status with an airline. To earn elite status with any domestic airline you basically have to fly over 25,000 miles. On top of that, most require you spend more than $3,000 doing so. Over the past several years I’ve become numb to…
It seems like stories like these come out almost every year now. I’m not sure how long American has been doing this, but I personally remember it happening back in 2015. I remember it vividly… I remember the offer because I had spent most of 2014 flying around the country. With each trip I added…
During my four hour layover in Tokyo’s Narita airport I decided to do some lounge hopping. I had just arrived in Tokyo after an amazing First Class Flight with Japan Airlines. My lounge hopping began with the old Japan Airlines First Class lounge in the Main Building. Although the old First Class lounge was a…
Just a few years ago earning elite status on American Airlines was incredibly easy to understand. At that time there were only three levels, Gold, Platinum, and Executive Platinum. You earned each at 25,000 miles, 50,000 miles and 100,000 miles, respectively. Also, back then you earned 1 mile per mile flown no matter how much…
I have to admit, over the past few years I’ve been incredibly lucky when it comes to travel. Since 2015 I can only think of a few major delays or canceled flights that have actually disrupted my plans. Generally I’m able to get out ahead of a delay or cancelation and salvage a trip. Unfortunately,…
In late 2018 I booked some absolutely incredible Cathay Pacific First Class fares thanks to a pricing mistake. Because of this mistake, which Cathay Pacific honored, I’d finally have the chance to fly Cathay Pacific First Class and Business class between the US and Asia It was arguably the deal of the decade, but there…
In just over a week I’m going to once again get on a plane and head to Asia. Next weeks flights are the last in a series of Cathay Pacific flights I booked in late 2018. Likewise, with these flights I’ll finally have earned enough miles to once again qualify for Executive Platinum status. While…
